Cooperation

The room was silent, far removed from the bloodshed outside.

Seeing that Xie De had closed his eyes, Beiwei took it upon herself to keep watch through the night, folding her arms and remaining alert.

But only a short while later, she saw the man, whose breathing had already evened out, snap his eyes open. His dark green eyes were clear, as though he had never slept.

It wasn't that he hadn't slept.

455's shrieking had simply startled him awake.

"Bzz-Aaaah! Host, something's coming. Hurry, brace the door!"

Before his mind caught up, his body was already moving. Xie De pressed a hand against the door, but he was too late. The figure outside swiftly squeezed through. He instinctively swung the long staff in his hand hard at the intruder, who let out a muffled grunt but reacted just as quickly. With practiced skill, the man caught the staff and pinned Xie De straight against the wall.

"It's me."

Wei Yanchi?!

The door shut. With finely sculpted features and eyes like stars, Wei Yanchi looked somewhat disheveled. Leaning against Xie De, he said in a low voice, "You'd better not move."

Sensing something else outside the door, Beiwei glared furiously at Wei Yanchi and gradually stopped even breathing.

The presence outside was intensely oppressive. An icy aura threatened to seep through the cracks around the door as it prowled outside, roaring and screaming in despair, its cries mingled with the wails of children.

Xie De stiffened again. What the hell had this damned protagonist provoked?!

Wei Yanchi, however, showed no sign of remorse. He casually lifted a lock of Xie De's silver hair and, beneath the man's icy gaze, curved his lips into a smile that seemed both ingratiating and mischievous.

The two were very close.

Wei Yanchi could clearly smell the faint tobacco scent on Xie De, mingled with highland cedar and a delicate sweetness. It was a very pleasant scent.

Eventually, the presence outside the door slowly faded away.

Xie De shoved the protagonist away and, still shaken, lit himself a cigarette to calm down.

He didn't inhale into his lungs. White smoke spilled from his thin lips, veiling a gaze as fierce as an eagle soaring over the tundra.

His voice was low and rough. "You'd better explain."

Wei Yanchi's gaze followed him the whole time. Rather than answering, he blinked, actually held out his hand, and shamelessly asked for a cigarette.

Go on, smoke! Smoke, you greedy brat!

Both impatient and pained, Xie De gave the protagonist one. This was the only pack he had left. Every cigarette smoked meant one fewer remaining, and this pack had been expensive!!

Yet after taking the cigarette, Wei Yanchi didn't smoke it. He merely held it beneath his nose and sniffed, then looked at Xie De with interest. "Do you like women's cigarettes, Mr. 39?"

"None of your business."

He didn't. Women's cigarettes tasted too weak, and they were sweet, too-not satisfying at all. This particular brand was especially ridiculous in its low tar content. After smoking one, all he had left in his mouth was a faintly sweet cedar flavor. And they cost 2,500 yuan a pack, with only twenty cigarettes inside. The price made his heart ache.

He only smoked them because of his nicotine cravings. 455 disliked the smell of tobacco, and it had taken a great deal of arguing before they each compromised and agreed on this brand.

Xie De suspected this had to be one of 455's tactics to make him quit smoking.

Beiwei also watched Wei Yanchi warily. Holding a tile, she stood behind him with a vicious look in her eyes. One word from Xie De, and this girl really would crack the protagonist's skull open.

Wei Yanchi, however, stood at ease, unconcerned by the danger of his situation. He smiled and said politely, "I've already worked out the general story behind what happened in this factory. I suspect the instance will present us with some challenges involving human nature next. So, how about working with me?"

Beiwei snapped, "Why should we trust you?"

"I can make it easier for you to leave this place." Wei Yanchi turned to look at Beiwei and said gently and politely, "You must be aware of my capabilities, Miss Beiwei."

Beiwei shuddered and immediately looked at Xie De.

The man held his cigarette between his fingers without saying a word, a hint of amusement in his gaze.

"455! What's going on here? Can we trust the protagonist?"

455 let out a piercing shriek that hurt his ears. "Bzz-Host, I knew we had a little luck on our side! I knew those three months hadn't been wasted! Say yes, quick! All the people I've seen transmigrate into books latched onto the protagonist like this, then coasted to victory. The protagonist of this book might be a lunatic, but-but he's pretty good to his own people."

"Look at you, throwing away all your dignity. Weren't you full of ambition earlier, saying we'd clear it ourselves?"

455 paused, running a stream of analysis through the phone, then heaved a long sigh. "But, Host, I underestimated just how scared you are of ghosts. At this rate, even with Beiwei here, our chances of clearing it are only twenty percent. Let's rely on the protagonist to get through this instance first. Once we're out, we'll do some proper training to address this."

That made far too much sense.

Unable to argue, Xie De had no choice but to compromise. He said softly to Wei Yanchi, "I'll work with you."

Please carry me, boss.

A flicker of surprise crossed Wei Yanchi's eyes. Smiling, he said, "Then here's to a pleasant partnership, Mr. 39."

Beiwei obediently sat back down on the bed.

Wei Yanchi began looking around the room.

Leaving Wei Yanchi and Beiwei to sort out their own interactions, Xie De leaned against the wall again and closed his eyes, exuding an aloof, refined air that warned strangers to keep their distance.

The night passed in silence.

When Xie De woke the next morning, he was unsurprised to find his head foggy.

He silently glanced at the others. Finding them both positively brimming with energy, he silently looked away.

"455, these two heavy hitters you mentioned are both pretty young, aren't they?"

455 slowly booted up. "Yeah. Beiwei's only seventeen, still a minor, and the protagonist's only twenty. Why?"

Xie De felt crushed. "If melancholy were a talent, I'd be a born prodigy."

455 said, "...Do you need me to play along with that joke?"

"No."

Melancholy, Xie De strode to the door and opened it. Then he could no longer afford to be melancholy.

A female corpse with a blood-covered face stood right outside. Half her face was rotting and being eaten by maggots; the other half was pallid bone, riddled with densely packed holes from decay. She was so close that they nearly touched.

A piercing scream lodged in his throat. Xie De realized that, because he so often spoke to 455 in his mind, he couldn't even open his mouth or scream for a moment.

Only his mind was racing.

Before 455 could scream first, a surge rippled through its data.

"Aaaaah!! 455! I want to go home! Holy shit! Fuck! That scared me to death!"

"Host! Bzz-"

455 released another electric current, forcibly calming Xie De down.

"Host, calm down!! Look, this thing hasn't hurt you! It just looks a little scary! Besides, there are two young people behind you. Hold it together! We're adults! This isn't scary at all!"

"Bullshit..."

Xie De frowned at the shock and lowered his gaze slightly to avoid looking at that face. His heart hammered in his chest, but the thing stood in the doorway, blocking the way. He couldn't even leave.

455 suggested, "You could kick it aside."

"Is that really okay?"

"Yes. I remember ghosts are afraid of bad people. The less afraid you act, the less likely they are to haunt you."

Gritting his teeth, Xie De kicked hard-perhaps with a little personal vengeance thrown in.

His kick sent the female corpse crashing against the corridor wall with a smack.

Xie De walked out, his expression icy.

It had all happened too fast. Following behind him, Beiwei hadn't noticed what had happened up ahead. When she emerged and saw the female corpse lying on the floor, her expression went blank for a moment.

Wei Yanchi was much the same. Thinking it over, he realized this seemed to be the thing that had chased him yesterday. Although it fell dormant during the day, it still looked terrifying. Had Xie De simply kicked it aside?

The same thought occurred to both of them.

As expected of Mr. 39. And just who was he, to dare treat an instance NPC like that?